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Barton: Chris Morrill, phone home

This is a shout-out to Chris Morrill, who used to be a star player at City Hall.

It’s time to call your former home. Savannah needs you. More than ever.

Last Thursday’s resignation of Rochelle Small-Toney as city manager, who was asked to leave by Mayor Edna Jackson and a majority on City Council, left a leadership void in the most powerful post in city government.

The mayor and aldermen appointed Stephanie Cutter, a veteran administrator with 23 years experience, as acting city manager. She’s capable and well-liked. But Cutter, 55, has no interest in the permanent job. That means taxpayers will have to pay for another search.

There’s no indication when that long, costly process might begin. Mayor Pro Tem Van Johnson and Alderman Tony Thomas suggested that there’s no rush to get it done. They said they first want to restore some stability to a 2,500-employee structure that has been rocked by turmoil, plummeting morale and poor performance in critical departments.

I agree that there’s no need for a rush job. In fact, there’s no need for a search at all. That’s because the right person for this position is almost right under the city’s nose. He’s working 446 miles north of here in Roanoke, Va.: Chris Morrill.

Morrill, 49, a former assistant Savannah city manager who worked in City Hall for nearly 18 years, resigned from his post in 2010 to take the city manager’s job in Virginia. His departure was a blow to city government and the larger community, which benefitted from his professionalism, creativity and honesty.

Even then-Mayor Otis Johnson and then-Alderman Van Johnson expressed their remorse to the Roanoke Times newspaper about Morrill’s departure.

“He’s a Savannahian,” Alderman Johnson told the reporter. “He will remain a Savannahian — just on loan to Roanoke.”

Mayor Johnson was equally blunt. “Y’all better do a good job and try to hold onto him, because I think there would be a real push to bring him back.”

Exactly, Mr. Ex-Mayor.

So let the pushing commence.

Morrill would bring instant stability and credibility to City Hall, which needs both. It might take him some time to fix what’s broken. But judging from his record, he’s a government Mr. Goodwrench. He knows which bolts to tighten and nuts to loosen.

He’s considered a whiz with numbers as well. For much of his time here, Morrill helped create the city’s annual budget, keeping it in the black when other cities were starting to bleed red. A backlog of unpaid invoices? Not on his watch.

But Morrill is no bloodless geek who gets his jollies through addition and subtraction. He’s one of those rare individuals who are as good with people as they are with balance sheets.

“Everybody loved Chris Morrill,” one city employee told me. “He was a great motivator. He knows how to rally people to a cause, he was committed to the team and he wasn’t antagonistic.”

That’s exactly what the doctor has prescribed for City Hall’s current ills. Hiring Morrill would super-size that order.

As a bonus, Morrill knows the political landscape here. He’s familiar with the issues and the players, the pitfalls and the opportunities.

This job should be a plum. Savannah, with a population of about 140,000, is one of the larger U.S. cities with a council-manager form of government. Working here is a good career move for up-and-comers. But will Savannah attract top-drawer candidates this time, since the last manager search was botched? Hiring Morrill eliminates that worry.

For Morrill, coming back from Roanoke (population 97,000) would be a step up in class, which is why he should take the job. He’d also get a nice pay raise: Small-Toney was paid $194,000; Morrill, as of last year, was paid $170,000.

At one time, Morrill was considered the heir apparent to the city manager’s post here. Then politics got in the way. So he became one of 104 candidates who applied for the job in Roanoke. The wise people in Virginia quickly snatched him up.

But once a Savannahian, always a Savannahian. City Hall needs what Morrill has to offer. It’s time to snatch him back.

Tom Barton is the editorial page editor of the Savannah Morning News. tom.barton@savannahnow.com.